Oct 12, 2010

Food That Stays With You

New York artist Sally Davies photographed a McDonald’s Happy Meal every day for the past six months. After 180 days on a shelf in Davies’ apartment, there was no mold and no decay, just a little shrinkage. You might say the meal was just as tantalizing as the day Davies bought it!

Salon has documented other efforts to grasp the changelessness of McDonald’s products, including a burger that had survived intact for 12 years as of 2008. (Sorry, no fries with that.) Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock famously kept Mickey D’s fries in pristine condition for 10 weeks in his 2004 documentary Super Size Me. (Spurlock’s burgers would have endured, too, had he not put them in closed jars.)

For its part, McDonald’s assures its customers that there are no preservatives in its meat. (The buns, cheese, and etceteras are another matter.) The stay-power of a hardy fast-food meal can be easily attributed to high volumes of sodium and fat, which prevent the growth of mold and bacteria. Like all fast foods, McDonald’s fare is, according to Salon, "fatty, salty, and practically empty of nutrients." Alas, that’s not as endearing a catch phrase as “I’m loving it,” which is still in use seven years after its introduction.

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